Is a draft on the way?
President Bush’s new War Czar certainly would consider it as a possibility:
“I think it makes sense to certainly consider it,” Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute said in an interview with National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered.”
“And I can tell you, this has always been an option on the table. But ultimately, this is a policy matter between meeting the demands for the nation’s security by one means or another,” said Lute, who is sometimes referred to as the “Iraq war czar.” It was his first interview since he was confirmed by the Senate in June.
I have said for years that if we are going to keep up all the existing commitments that we have in the world - a draft would be inevitable. Politically, it would never happen right now. Americans do not have the stomach for a draft. The alternative is scaling back commitments. As a political compromise, I hypothesize that this is the avenue that the U.S. will pursue.